Coming out of an impressive 2014 season, three players from California Baptist University’s baseball team continued their careers after being drafted by three different Major League Baseball teams in the MLB draft.
Trevor Oaks, who added statistics from the pitcher’s mound and helped lead the Lancers to 39 victories, replaced Glenn Barling as the highest drafted player in CBU’s history. Drafted in 1981 by the San Francisco Giants, Barling was taken in the 11th round. Oaks broke that record this year when he was taken by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the seventh round, for the 219th pick overall.
“Playing professional baseball has been a progressing dream,” Oaks said. “I always thought it was unobtainable, but now that I’m here, it’s surreal. My goal was always to be the best pitcher I could be, and God blessed me with great coaches and teams that fostered a productive work ethic and jovial spirit for the game.”
Oaks is adding to his career stats with the Ogden Raptors, the minor league team affiliated with the Dodgers, building on an already impressive one-year career at CBU.
Oaks, who was a sophomore business major last season, played in nine games in his first year at CBU. In a series played against Idaho Falls, Oaks threw for six innings and struck out six batters, only allowing three hits and one earned run.
Being drafted by the MLB was a dream come true for Oaks, buthesaidthatitisalearning process.
“There’s a lot of ups and downs, but I’m learning a lot and doing my best to stay focused, be a sponge and have a short-term memory when things don’t go the way I hoped,” Oaks said.
Caleb Dirks, another pitcher for the Lancers, brought his sophomore year at CBU to a close as a draftee to the Atlanta Braves in the 15th round. Dirks was a junior criminal justice major before the draft.
Dirks has already played a combined 16 games for two different minor league teams affiliated with the Atlanta Braves, racking up 32 strikeouts and one victory.
The third and final Lancer drafted was Blair Moore, an infielder, who was chosen by the Chicago White Sox in the 28th round. Moore was a senior business management major before the draft.
Moore is also making a good name for himself with the Arizona League White Sox, appearing in 21 games, scoring 11 runs and driving in 14 RBIs
